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Families with young children who travel - want to help with my homework? (Read 81 times)


Hip Redux

    I need to get some some sense on how often people with kids take a plane to travel with said kid(s) in tow.  I also need to get a sense about how often families purchase luggage.  I know, riveting stuff, right.  

     

    The poll is about how often people fly with their kids.  If you don't have kids, you really aren't any help to me in the poll.  However, feel free to respond in the thread and tell me about your thoughts about air travel, kids, luggage or any combination of the three.

     

    If you'd like to respond with how often you purchase luggage for the purpose of making travel with kids easier, please do.   Or I might be compelled to make another shitty poll about luggage, and I don't think anyone wants that.

     

    happylily


      Oh man... this is confusing...lol... How old do the kids have to be? can I provide data from the past? Do you want data from the families with young kids I work with?

      PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

              Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

      18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010

      Philliefan33


        My kids are all grown up, but I answered based on how much we flew when they were young. We travelled from PHl to PDX once a year to see DH's side of the family. It wasn't easy when they were toddlers but the girls were seasoned flyers by age six.

         

        We've purchased luggage a few times, but always a piece or two as needed. Never any expensive matching stuff.


        Hip Redux

          Oh man... this is confusing...lol... How old do the kids have to be? can I provide data from the past? Do you want data from the families with young kids I work with?

           

          If the kids are older now but you recall how often you traveled with them, feel free to respond!   For the ages - like 10 and younger, maybe.  It's not terribly scientific. lol

           

          And if you feel like asking around, that would be great too.  The more the merrier.

           


          Hip Redux

            My kids are all grown up, but I answered based on how much we flew when they were young. We travelled from PHl to PDX once a year to see DH's side of the family. It wasn't easy when they were toddlers but the girls were seasoned flyers by age six.

             

            We've purchased luggage a few times, but always a piece or two as needed. Never any expensive matching stuff.

             

            Thank you! Smile

             

            happylily


              I have another question! (I take your poll very seriously, as you see). What kind of travel are we talking about? Only flying? What about travel by car? And if the car travelling is included in the poll, how many miles from the house does it have to be? 

               

              Anyway, with my DD, I never flew with her until she was 12. We were dirt poor. We did travel by car for vacation (weekends in Vermont are vacations, right?). Maybe 4 times a year.

               

              With my son, years later, about 2 trips by car per year (to other provinces and states) and at least one trip by plane per year (which makes my DD resent the fact that I had her when I was young and destitute ).

               

              We never buy luggage because we're cheap and we don't care. I still have an old backpack from my trip through Europe in 1984 (cost me $200 back then, a fortune). SO has a cheap faux leather bag that's coming apart. He already had it when I met him in 1989. We did buy a suitcase on wheels for DS about 6 years ago.

               

              Oh, and I used some frequent flyer points in exchange for an expensive leather bag made by Roots. Meh... it's all right, I guess. Not as good as my old backpack, though.

              PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

                      Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

              18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010


              Hip Redux

                I'm looking at flying only for the poll, yes.   But your response is very detailed so you get extra points!

                 

                StepbyStep-SH


                  We haven't flown with DS yet (he is almost 8), but travel by car at least once or twice a year (several hundred miles per trip). We have never bough luggage specifically with him in mind, with the exception of one bag that I don't know if you would really consider "luggage." It is a tote bag with multiple pockets around the outside that we set next to him in the car to hold his books, crayons, audio books, toys, etc.

                   

                  Totally unhelpful response, I'm sure, but I felt like I needed to contribute something, just because I do have a child in that age range.

                  20,000 miles behind me, the world still to see.

                  cloark


                    I've got 2 kids ages 5 and 3.  When they were 2 and 0, we moved a long way from "home".  Since then we've made an annual trip back to see family.  While my younger daughter was still under 2, we flew back twice.  We only had to pay for 3 tickets, and finances were good back then.  Since then, finances have been less good, and with all four of us needing a ticket, we're back to driving.  Last year we made the 25 hour drive from MI to UT and it was surprisingly not horrible.  This year we're a little closer - it only takes 20 hours to get there from Chicago - so we might even make a detour to see Mt. Rushmore on the way out.  Finances are better this year than last, but it's hard for me to spend the money when I know that we can drive much cheaper.

                     

                    My wife and I each had some luggage when we got married, and that's been sufficient for us for the last 10 years.  I suspect it'll still be good for another 10 years.

                    Jack K.


                    uʍop ǝpᴉsdn sǝʇᴉɹʍ ʇI

                      How about long road trips? We don't fly very often.

                      Birdwell


                        I don't fly anywhere with my kids (girls, ages 3&7), but we take a lot of road trips.

                        We have bought luggage (a single suitcase) for them a year ago, from the thrift store, for $3.

                        It was pink and had wheels. The girls fell in love with it and decided they'd rather have that instead of putting their stuff in the laundry basket like they used to.

                         

                        They share the suitcase, because a 3 year old doesn't need much to go on any trips (at least mine doesn't) and the 7 year old only ever wants to take books (no clothes, just books).

                         

                        If we ever had to fly somewhere, I'm sure we could cram they're stuff inside my suitcases and their backpacks. I don't know that I'd get them their own stuff. If I did, it would probably be from the thrift store. I'm cheap like that.

                         

                        I have and use the same set of luggage I bought 15+ years ago.

                        We don't fly anywhere because all our family lives close enough to drive.

                        Zelanie


                          Hmm, we flew a few times when DD was small.  Back east to visit my parents, once to a wedding, and then once to Mexico just DD and I when she was 7.  We couldn't afford any nice luggage.  I think once she was old enough to cart it around herself, we got her a cheap kids' rolly cart suitcase.  Before that I think I just packed her stuff in my suitcase and made her a pack with a few toys/fun stuff.

                           

                          I want to say that we got DD her own suitcase when she was maybe 13?  Before that she just used whatever crummy one of ours was available.  Even then, we just got her one from Ross, which seems to work fine.  It's also humongous, because as a teenager she needs to pack every single article of clothing and hair and makeup items with her no matter how short the trip is.


                          Antipodean

                            My DD has just turned 11, but she took her first overseas trip when only 5 months old, from New Zealand to Australia to see the grandparents. We went to China when she was 18 months (that was an 11 hour trip and quite an experience!) then moved to China to live when she was 2.5. We stayed there for 3 years, having a trip home in that time as well as some plane trips around China. Since coming back at age 5.5 we've had a few trips to Australia or China, so I've chosen once per year on average. We have never spent much on luggage - just bought something relatively cheap when we absolutely needed to.

                             

                            Plane flights, especially long ones, were hardest when she was small, but even when she was 9 she was hard to please on long flights and hogged seats, lol! For a while she would get severe ear pain on landing which was stressful as I could do nothing but urge her to swallow, yawn or pop her ears some such way. You always think about what other people are thinking of your parenting skills when your kid is on display like they are on a plane. And inside airports. Travelling can be stressful at the best of times and I'm sure my DH, DD & I are no ad for a happy family!!

                             

                            We actually have a flight coming up in a couple of weeks time and I'm looking forward to that. We will be doing a rail trail bike trip for 5 days while away, so luggage will be an issus that I haven't thought about yet!

                            Julie

                             

                            "It's not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves."

                            ~ Sir Edmund Hillary

                            catwhoorg


                            Labrat

                              DD gets to fly to the UK once a year, first trip was when she was about 10 months old (In her Car Seat).

                              That's a long haul flight, plus a short hop over there each way.

                               

                              First year she needed the car seat. (~10 months)

                              Last year she was fine in the regular seat.

                               

                              Obviously car seats at the far end are necessary. (my Parents have one Smile )

                               

                              For the luggage, ours is about 4-5 years old, and we can see some signs of wear on it, maybe another year or so and it will be replaced.

                              Of course some of the luggage does a whole lot more trips than just that, with my work commitments

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                                We have been flying with our kids on average once a year since they were born. They were always generally pretty good travelers, they wouldn't piss off you DINKs too much if you were sitting in front of them.

                                We don't buy new luggage very often. We are probably on our second set (other than random smaller bags) since we've been married, 20 yrs. Typically we travel with one bag for the two of us, and one for the 2 kids to share.

                                We bought new bags a several years ago, one huge bag for us and one medium size one for the kids. (Two girls but both low maintenance.) The huge bag ended up being a huge PITA. When full it was so damn heavy you could barely lift it, and it was always overweight vs. the airline requirements, so we'd have to scramble at the last minute & shift stuff into the other bag to avoid paying the fee. So we recently got rid of it & replaced it with a second medium size bag.

                                 

                                I have no idea what you are trying to survey BTW.

                                Dave

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